What Parents Can Do

Car crashes—the #1 killer of teens—about 3,000 young lives every year.  That’s up to 8 teen deaths a day that can be prevented. New drivers—even straight-A students and "good kids"—are more likely to be involved in a fatal crash, mostly due to driver inexperience.  It's a fact.  The good news is that you can make a difference by getting involved with your teen’s driving.  Here’s how:

Fact: Proven Steps Save Lives

Practice driving as often as you can with your teen.  The more experience he or she has behind the wheel, the safer they’ll drive.  Make sure your new driver and their passengers always wear seat belts.  Prohibit driving when crashes are more likely to occur—at night and when there are other teens in the car.  And be sure to learn and enforce your state’s teen driving laws—you can find them at on the State-Specific GDL Information page.

Fact: A Parent-Teen Driving Agreement Sets the Rules of the Road

Discuss your rules of the road with your teen. Talk about why they are important to follow, as well as consequences for breaking them.  Believe it or not, your children listen to you, particularly when they know you have their best interests at heart.  Reinforce your talks by working with your teen to create a parent-teen driving agreement.

Fact: Parents Must Lead by Example

Don’t wait until your teen is old enough to drive to start modeling good driving behaviors.  If you talk on the phone, text, speed or drive without your seat belt, so might your teen. 

Fact: Other Parents Need This Information

Share your rules of the road with parents of other teens.  Tell the parents of your teen’s friends about “Parents Are the Key,” because working together helps save lives.  Take the next step by showing your support and sharing information on Facebook and Twitter.